Stolen Pleasures: version 2 - 2. Chapter 2

Sitka stood slowly, and transferred his weight from one hoof to the other as he watched the boy sleeping. His partner came up behind him, re-wrapping his loin cloth with a self-satisfied grin.

“What are you waiting for? You have the enchantment we got from that sorcerer. Cleanse his mind and we can get out of here.”

Sitka fingered the purse string which held the Bag of Holding closed, and bit his lower lip. Jahke had been, of all the pretty things they’d ever taken advantage of, by far the most accommodating, the most willing, and Sitka had never tasted anything like him. He watched the boy they’d screwed so thoroughly, observed the softness of his flat belly, the sharp points of his hips, his knees, his shoulders. He wanted to stroke the fine soft blond hair again, and taste those lips that had kissed him back so eagerly, cup the neat, hairless scrotum and listen to Jahke moan.

“No.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t want to, Shindae.” Sitka turned to his friend with a pleading expression. “We can’t do that to him.”

Shindae had finished braiding the last of his cloth strips and bound his arm once more with an exasperated sigh.

“It’s that or kill him, and I was hoping not to go grave digging tonight. We still have to pick up more ingredients for Tobias.”

Sitka grinned, suddenly distracted by his stomach, and the thoughts of the delicious things produced by their resident chef.

“He’s making forgotten cookies again?”

“Yeah, but only if we come home with eggs. Inai ate the last of the chickens. Again.” Shindae scooped up his cloak and reached for the Bag held at Sitka’s waist by his belt. “I’ll do it.”

“I want to keep him.” Sitka stepped out of the fire demon’s reach quickly, his hooves loud on the suspended floor. “Please Shindae.”

“You’ll get bored.”

“No…” Sitka gazed at the sleeping boy. Jahke had rolled onto his back once his hands were unbound, one arm resting on the evidence of his emission, the other flung out across the floor. Sitka could imagine him easily in his bed surrounded by plush furs. “You could never get bored of that.”

Shindae sighed, but began to unbuckle his cloak, resigned to the inevitable.

“There are prettier boys.”

“Where? I’ve never seen one. And he tastes… so good.”

“He’ll be your responsibility.” Shindae told him, and passed over the cloak.

Sitka wrapped the boy in the thick cloth, then scooped Jahke up in his arms. He paused, and stroked a lock of the boy’s hair away from his eyes.

“Don’t get all stupid and sentimental now, bud. We still have to climb back out of the window. Come on.”

The horned demon sighed, and hefted the boy over his shoulder. As he passed the table, he extinguished the naphtha lamp, then scooped up the book the boy had been reading. He smirked at the picture, then stuffed it into the Bag of Holding. The pair of strange, dark figures slunk out of the window as easily as they’d crept in, leaving nothing behind but the ragged mess of Jahke’s clothes and a stain on the floor.

In the gloom of the city, illuminated only by fizzing gas lamps, they wandered unobserved as the natural human tendencies to ignore anything out of the ordinary blurred out their images to people passing by. As they turned towards the nearest market, a priest hurrying away from a brothel walked directly into Shindae, who snarled. The man looked up, and up, and quivered with fear at the image his mind provided. The fire demon shook off the contact and walked ahead with his horned friend, leaving the priest to return to his cloisters and begin writing a very violent sermon damning the sins of the flesh, extra-marital coupling, and all those who indulged in it.

Sitka let his partner deal with the chickens, even though negotiating was usually his strong point. People under the influence of compulsion became very suggestive to handing over their goods for free. As it was, Shindae swapped a couple of coins which were worthless in Hell for half a dozen softy clucking birds in a willow whip cage and a box of two dozen eggs. Sitka filled his time by wandering through the stalls of various evening traders, acquiring anything he could lift and tuck into the Bag with one hand, the other clamped firmly round Jahke’s unconscious form. He picked up spices, dried herbs, jars of honey, stuff which he now knew was called jam, a handful of small delicate spoons, and, because it was hanging within easy reach, a lute with a rounded bowl shaped body and a slender mahogany neck. Shindae hoisted the chickens onto his shoulder, whistled between his teeth, and Sitka followed him until they were in a side street. The horned demon took the chickens and eggs and slipped it all easily into the Bag of Holding.

“The chickens are going to make a mess in there.”

“We’d best get home then.” Shindae raised his head, closed his eyes, and inhaled deeply. “This way.”

As they walked, Sitka reflected that he was lucky to have a scavenging partner who was so good at finding crossing places. Sitka could have done it alone, but only by retracing his steps back to where they’d arrived from, which he was certain was now the other side of a major river – they’d wandered quite a way before finding Jahke. Shindae’s special skills were much faster. The alley they walked into was not as unpopulated as either demon would have liked, but the cry of ‘police, quick!’ had the occupants scrambling for their clothes, or not, and taking off in the other direction. Shindae smirked.

“You’re always so damn proud of yourself with that.” Sitka sighed.

“It beats the clean-up of murdering everybody like Kiorl does. Is it me, or has he been spilling more blood lately?”

“I wouldn’t like to say,” Sitka replied crisply. Truthfully, he too had noticed the increasing propensity for destruction and violence exhibited by the major demon of their household, but it had never been wise to question the panther’s motives, not even when he was in a good mood. Sitka glanced about them, and stroked the cloaked bundle over his shoulder. “Shall we?”

There was no ceremony to the act, they’d done it a million times before from and to all kinds of worlds. Going home always felt good though, and Sitka stood close to his friend, positioning Jahke between them, touched Shindae’s hips with his free hand and felt the fiery demon throw an arm over his other shoulder as the smooth crystal in his other hand began to glow with an inner fire. Sitka spared a moment hoping that the boy wouldn’t mind being snatched away from his life and his home, and then the fire consumed them.

The Way was darkness lit with countless stars, points of light whirling away in all directions, as limitless as the power of Gods. To Sitka and Shindae, the route home was picked out with familiarity and brightness, and it was no work at all to tread carefully along the sparkling path, ignoring all but their destination. It was very easy to become lost in The Way: those who strayed from the path were never seen again. Sitka remembered, hazily, like a vision seen through smoked glass, demons he’d known when he was younger, figures who had passed through portals into the darkness and never returned. No such challenge presented itself to the two demons, and they stepped into the welcome heat of the Inner Circle with matching smiles.

“You’re back, thank fuck for that.”

Sitka frowned at his naga housemate, then glanced around.

“I thought you were supposed to be on duty at the South Gate?”

“This is the South Gate,” Inai replied.

Shindae rolled his eyes, and his lava patterns – previously dimmed by their exposure to the extreme chill of the way, glowed hotly once more as the fires of Hell roared in the near distance. South Gate was the closest portal to the fire mountains, and the furthest from the house.

“We were supposed to come out at the West Portal...”

“Closed,” Inai hissed, his bright eyes narrowing suddenly. “His Majesty is in another one of his moods. He smashed the dial on his way Upstairs.”

“Fuck...” Sitka rubbed a hand over one horn in disbelief. The dial was the only way to send anyone going through the portal to the right place. Getting back with a portal stone was easy, but you couldn’t use the crystals from anywhere inside the Inner Circle. “I hope everyone makes it home OK.”

Inai settled back on his coils and shook his great scaled head in disapproval.

“The Prince sent all the major demons to bring everyone back. Kiorl was literally about to leave to go find you guys – everyone else is already home. The Prince is furious, by the way.” The naga paused, and focused on the cloak wrapped bundle over Sitka’s shoulder. “What’s that?”

“Nothing.” Shindae said quickly.

“No one!” Sitka snapped.

“You idiot.”

“Smells like prey.” Inai’s scales glowed with the thought. “Did you guys find a new toy?”

“No.” Sitka growled. “and don’t eat the new chickens either. Tobias was fucking livid after last time. If he refuses to cook again and we have to go back to eating things Shindae burns, then I’m going to slice up a dish of griddled snake.” He glared pointedly at the naga. “Don’t eat the chickens.”

“And don’t be late for dinner,” Shindae reminded him as he handed the chit over from their expedition. “I’m going to the office,” he told his partner, “See how long they think the fix is going to take. Can you manage?”

Sitka rolled his eyes, nodded to Inai, and started up the hill and along the long looping path which would lead, finally, to their house. He transferred Jahke from his shoulder into his arms, and took the opportunity as he walked to study the boy’s face. His blush pink lips were slack in sleep, and he was pale – which was common for his world – with blond hair and eyelashes so soft that they were like golden silk. Sitka longed to kiss him again. He was sure that it hadn’t just been the heightened pleasure of conquest or the power of compulsion which had made the boy taste so sweet, or press against him so firmly. Jahke was not any normal boy. Sitka thought of the book he’d snatched up from the room where they’d found the boy, and smirked to himself at the picture he’d seen. No, Jahke was not a normal sort of boy, not on his world. But in Hell, Sitka already knew he’d fit right in.

Kiorl was standing in the open doorway to Zinkara Rumah, dressed in full regalia to go Upstairs, and he looked relieved when he saw Sitka. The horned demon was surprised, because he and the great panther had never been particularly close, but it was nice to think that had he gotten stuck somewhere out there, Kiorl would have come looking for him. The panther let out a huff of relief and waved a hand, using magic to discard much of his armour.

“One of the crows said you were back, but I wanted to make sure. Shindae went to the office?”

“Yes.”

“You’re lucky to have such a dedicated partner… actually so are the rest of us. At least someone does their paperwork on ti- What is that?” Kiorl’s relieved tone vanished, replaced by a hardness that made Sitka pace nervously, his hooves clopping on the stone doorstep.

“Ummm….”

“Sitka.” Kiorl stepped close and twitched back a fold of the borrowed cloak to reveal Jahke’s face and bare shoulder. “What are you doing with that human?”

“I wanted to….”

“To keep him?” Kiorl growled. “To recruit him?” Sitka tried not to show how hopeful the words made him, and failed miserably. “You cannot be serious! You are strong, Sitka, but you are young. You cannot want to recruit a mate. Not already.”

“But...” Sitka gazed down at the boy in his arms, and he couldn’t help the smile which showed his fangs. He inhaled Jahke’s scent, all soft and clean, and he knew he was hooked. “I don’t care. I’m keeping him.”

Kiorl’s pupils narrowed to mere slits.

“You do not have a Chain of Possession. You are too young to own one. You must keep him safe yourself, you cannot use any other influence to do so. I’d urge to you reconsider… but I see there’s not a lot of point. Do not let him leave the house for any reason, he’ll be stolen away as quick as blinking.” Kiorl sighed. “Please tell me you at least brought more eggs?”

“And chickens,” Sitka reassured him happily.

“Fucking chickens… There’s gotta be a way of making them shut up.” Kiorl turned and walked into the house, muttering and shaking his head.

Sitka was suddenly reminded of the mess the chickens might be making in the Bag, but he also didn’t feel much like introducing his new… friend, to the rest of his house mates while the boy was passed out. Instead he rushed up the steps and trotted along the corridor, past the bathroom and Tobias and Zai’s room towards his own. He paused for a moment outside the door of the only uninhabited room, and wondered if he couldn’t just leave the boy in the bed which had been deserted for more than half a century. Kiorl would probably be mad if he found out though, and Sitka shouldered open his own door and placed the boy down on his own bed. The house must have known, as the house so often did, and Sitka noticed that the furs and blankets on his bed were new and clean, and there were several extra pillows arranged along the wooden headboard which bore the scratches and marks of his horns. He arranged a pillow under Jahke’s head, and the boy muttered something indistinct as he rolled onto his side, his arms wrapping around nothing. Sitka laid one of the new, super soft, blankets over him, took one last, long, lingering look, and pelted down the back stairs into the kitchen.

“You can beg all you want. We’re not having sex in the kitchen.”

Zai made a noise that sounded very much like a whine.

“You know I’ll take it out of your hide later for saying no...”

Sitka knew the exact moment they both felt his presence, and he smiled as he came into view.

“Oh, hi Sitka.” Zai glared at his friend’s lack of timing. “You look pleased with yourself. Did you get anything fun Upstairs?”

The horned demon tried very hard not to think of the boy he’d left sleeping in his bed. Privacy was a limited quantity in Zinkara Rumah, unless you were Tobias, and the downside of living with a pair of empaths was that it was impossible to keep secrets. Both of them could tell he was happy, and of all the people Sitka felt he could talk to about recruiting, it would be the one couple he lived with who’d already been through it.

“Uh-uh, no way.” Zai flicked his tail in annoyance and shook his head. “I am not giving you advice on how to talk to your new friend. You brought him home without thinking it through – you deal with it.”

“Because you carefully weighed the pros and cons before dragging me home?” Tobias snapped sharply. Sometimes, Sitka wondered if they even liked each other, but then the noises he heard from their room were often very inspiring. “Sitka, stop thinking about me naked. Again. Did you bring eggs?”

In his haste to avoid the mess of chickens and to get Tobias to forgive his accidental indiscretions, Sitka broke the cage of the chickens had been in, and the fluffy, feathery, white birds went clucking and squawking all over the kitchen. It took a little while to catch them, but by the time he and Zai had gotten the animals secured, Tobias was laughing, and separating eggs white into a large stoneware bowl.

“You two look hilarious with feathers in your hair.” The chef reached over the counter and took a white mote from Sitka’s dark curls. “Come, sit. Tell us about your boy.”

Sitka beamed, and unpacked the rest of the Bag. Tobias cooed over the spices, sorted the spoons away into a drawer, and frowned at Sitka as he held the lute to his chest and began to tune the strings.

“You play?”

“Sitka can play anything with strings.” Zai grinned at his mate, then there was a pause, and the horned demon knew they were talking to each other. “I suppose he hasn’t had something to play since before you came. I remember there was an incident with a guitar?”

“Kiaza said he could play, and then ran into the fire with it. Stupid snake forgot not everything is fire proof.” Sitka rolled his eyes. “I kinda miss him though.” He strummed the lute for a minute. “I wonder if Jahke likes music...”

“That’s his name? Is he from the same Earth as me?”

Sitka shook his head, and Tobias looked momentarily saddened.

“He’ll be hungry when he wakes up, going through The Way really takes it out of a mortal. I’ll make sure I’ve got something ready for him – even if it is the middle of the night. We’ll need more bread.”

Even when Kiorl complained about having to share the house with a former-human, another empath, and a man who did not share in their generally shameless sexual proclivities, he did so in the tempered manner of one who had grown used to good food. It was well known throughout the Inner Circle that Zinkara Rumah boasted the best chef in all of Hell, and friends of the house were very lucky to get invited for dinner. Tobias often complained that his repertoire was too limited, but Sitka couldn’t find a thing to complain about. Two hot meals a day, and all the bread a demon could eat was such a huge improvement on the way they had survived before. The horned demon took his lute and the Bag of Holding, promised he’d be back in time to eat, and escaped back to his room before Shindae arrived back to question him.

As he let himself in the door, he heard shuffling and movement, and turned to find the bed empty. Several things happened at once: Sitka frowned, he began to form the opening syllable of the boy’s name, something heavy hit him around the back of the head, Jahke grunted and gasped, and then his forged breastplate with the silver scroll work was clattering to the floor and Jahke was on his knees beside him.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!”

Sitka groaned and shut his eyes, his vision had gone blurry.

“What did you do that for?”

“I didn’t realise it was you! I didn’t… recognise you in the light...” Jahke voice faltered, and Sitka got the distinct feeling that everything his human mind was telling him was suddenly at war with his voice. He reached out a grasped the boy’s shoulder firmly.

“Don’t think so hard.”

“I-I-I-...where are we?”

“My room. Well, your room….our room? Fuck, you hit hard for a skinny thing.” Sitka shook his head experimentally and the room swam. “In Hell.”

“H-H-Hell?”

Sitka glanced up at the tremor and terror in Jahke’s voice. The boy’s soft blue eyes were wide with shock, staring at nothing as his mind tried to wrangle with what he’d just been told. Sitka snarled to himself – he should’ve been there when the boy woke up. Coming to, naked and alone in a totally strange place had to be pretty disconcerting, at least that what Tobias had said.

“Yes. Jahke?”

The human looked at him, every line of his body still tense with fear.

“Do you remember who I am?”

He nodded mutely.

“Are you OK?”

Jahke shook his head, quivering. Sitka sighed, and brought the boy into his arms for a kiss. He didn’t really want to, it would have been nice to get to know the young man he’d brought home in his natural state, but there was no point in Jahke spending the whole of his first night in Hell as a shivering wreck, so he trickled enough compulsion into the boy to make him forget his fear and groan against his lips.

“Better?”

“Mmmm...” Jahke melded to his chest, pushing him back until he was lying along his front and Sitka was supporting them against the wall. His kisses were wet and open, and deeply delicious, and Sitka didn’t want to move. “Tasty Sitka.”

“Is that right?” The demon smiled to himself. Without his inhibitions, Jahke clearly thought with his crotch. “And what would you like to do now, Beautiful?”

“Kiss more,” Jahke sighed happily. After a while he began kissing down Sitka’s throat, then his chest. “Is this really Hell?” he asked between touches of lips and tongue.

“Y-yes babe.”

“Why aren’t we on fire?”

Sitka would have laughed, but Jahke had reached his hips, and was now nuzzling at the folds of his loin cloth, fingers moving dreamily over the skin of his upper thighs.

“Hell isn’t much like the bible says it is.” Which was true regardless of which version of the bible his world used – they were all only good for wiping one’s arse with, especially if you got a copy with nice thin paper. “We have kitchens, and plumbing and – ahhh!- beds. Ohhhhhh… that’s good.”

Jahke’s nimble fingers hadn’t had much trouble with his belts, and the touch of the boy’s questing tongue on the tip of his cock robbed the demon momentarily of the ability to speak. He hadn’t really been thinking about pressing himself on the boy, it had only been a few hours since their first encounter, and he would still be sore, but he’d reacted to the nearness of Jahke’s body in a very predictable manner. Now he watched in rapt fascination as Jahke licked each twisting ridge of his unusually shaped member, clearly concentrating on the task at hand. His new lover nuzzled at the base of his shaft, where the keratin ridges melted back into normal smooth skin again, and frowned gently.

“Are all demons like you?”

“Errrr...” Sitka didn’t think he’d ever been as lost for words as he was just then. Jahke kissed and licked him between words, and it took most of his self control to resist just grabbing the boy and setting him to task.

“Are you all this sexy? Or are you… special? Your cock is different… I like it.” His pink tongue swiped across the tip. “Mmm, tasty Sitka.”

“Oh fuck….”

Sitka threw his head back, because the expression in Jahke’s pale blue eyes was so intense. There wasn’t enough of him touching the boy to know if he was still under the influence of compulsion or not, but the horned demon couldn’t believe he’d gotten quite that lucky. Another minute later, he no longer cared, and came with a groan in several long spurts on Jahke’s proffered tongue. He pulled the boy up against him and they kissed deeply, but when Jahke drew back, he was staring again at Sitka’s horns, and there was fear in his eyes.

The demon drew a deep breath: it was going to be a long night.